


Little Boy

by kraefandoms



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Avengers: Infinity War, Civil War (Marvel), Fluff, Infinity War, M/M, Not Canon Compliant, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-13
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2020-03-02 13:25:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18811789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kraefandoms/pseuds/kraefandoms
Summary: Another World, Another Set of Problems, but Another Set of Gifts, Too.Song: Little Boy - Barns Courtney





	Little Boy

**Author's Note:**

> Song Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCoz1O5gczE

_ Little boy inside my chest _

_ Beat my heart just like a drum _

 

Tony hugs Peter to his chest gently, smiling at his son. Peter is fast asleep, and Tony, Peter, and Steve are lying on the sofa. Tony lazily grins up at Steve as he kisses him on his chin, causing Steve to chuckle softly.

“I love you, you know?” Tony mumbles, leaning into his husband.

“We’re married, you big dork,” Steve replies, grinning. 

Tony gives Steve a cheesy grin.

 

_ Tell him I'll never forget _

_ How it was when we were young _

 

Peter’s little legs carry him into their bedroom as he jumps onto the bed.

“Happy father’s day!” He cheers, his little voice carrying though the room.

To his surprise, his dads aren’t in bed. Confused, he wanders the halls. Eventually, he reaches the balcony by the kitchen.

Steve and Tony are leaning against each other, the sun turning them into silhouettes merging into one as they talk about their plans for the day.

Shrugging it off, Peter runs at them, trying his plan again.

 

_ 'Cause you and I, we dreamed a dream _

_ On the road in '93 _

 

Steve laughs, the wind blowing through his hair as they speed down the coast.

Steve thinks about the first time they did this, and Tony getting in trouble because Howard hadn’t wanted Steve to leave the compound yet.

That’s when Steve realized he might be in love.

Six months later, he’s sure that his boyfriend is the best thing that ever happened to him.

They stop at a outlook overlooking the Pacific just as the sun starts to set.

Steve looks at Tony and wonders how such a perfect person exists. He kind of wishes he had his sketchbook with his so he could draw Tony in this perfect lighting

Tony looks back at him, jarring Steve from his thoughts.

“Something on your mind?” Tony asks.

Steve shakes his head. “Only that I want to stay with you forever.”

Tony blushes, smiling, and looks down. It takes a moment, but he looks back up into Steve’s eyes.

“I think we have a deal there, Captain Rogers.”

It’s Steve’s turn to blush, and Tony laughs, before kissing him as the sun disappears into the ocean.

 

_ So tell him it's not over yet _

_ I still got some fight in me _

 

Tony and Steve refuse to look each other in the eye, and Peter stares between them. Steve actually looks kind of angry, but Tony just looks upset and on the verge of tears. Steve briefly looks at Tony, then looks away, and Peter can see his expression change as it registers in Steve’s brain how Tony looks.

Steve loses resolve almost immediately, but Tony pushes him away, shaking his head, not saying a word.

Later, when he’s alone, Peter looks through old photos of the three of them, struggling not to cry.

 

_ Woah, I'm gonna lie low _

 

Steve lets Natasha guide him away as she leads him to all the hiding places she knows. Bucky looks at Steve concerned, and Steve knows what he wants to talk about. But he’s determined not to give him the chance.

Steve ends up failing, and Bucky sits across from him in a hotel room in the middle of Russia.

“When are you going back?” Bucky asks.

Steve shakes his head, a lump in his throat forming. “I don’t know. Tony was pretty angry.”

Bucky scoffs. “Not that angry. He loves you!”

Steve bites his lip. “Oh, no. He might love me, but it’s very possible he’s that angry.”

Tears start welling up in his eyes, and he can hear Bucky trying to calm him down, but it’s over now.

Bucky holds him tight as he sobs. 

“I just miss him so much....”

 

_ Smoke in my hand, oh _

 

Tony works furiously at fixing the suit, anger and hurt. It’s not until the third day when Rhodes forces him to when he stops.

But he can’t go into his room, his and Steve’s room, because he keeps finding himself wishing Steve would be there.

There’s just too much emotion to deal with.

Peter is away for the week, staying at his aunt’s, which is probably for the best right now.

Especially considering Tony is currently breaking down, wondering, wondering where he went wrong.

He ends up back in the lab again, his actual hands and the hands of his suit soon surrounded by smoke.

Rhodey has to chase him back to bed when he starts crying too much to see through the tears and the smoke surrounding him as he works.

As Rhodes carries him, Tony murmurs repeatedly about how much he misses Steve, and Rhodes just murmurs back something Tony can’t hear.

 

_ Lying awake in my hotel bed, oh _

 

Steve stares up at the ceiling of the hotel room they’re currently staying in, unable to sleep. He wishes he could fix what he did wrong, but he know there’s no way for him to do that anymore. Still, he know, if he could do it over again, he would find a way to fix this. For there had to be a way to fix this. There has to be a way for Steve to end up by his husband’s side again.

Tony stares up at the ceiling of the hotel room he’s in for work, but even away from home he can’t sleep. All he can think of is how Steve used to be here with him. He wishes Steve still could, but he’s afraid he pushed Steve too far away this time. And he’s certainly afraid of the rejection if he tried calling Steve to tell him to come back. But Tony misses Steve just so much, so, so much that there had to be a way. There has to be a way for Tony to end up by his husband’s side again.

 

_ Down in the valley, down on my luck, oh _

_ Darling I pray something picks me up _

 

Tony isn’t the one who ends up using the phone to call Steve, which makes Steve’s heart hurt. But when he learns from Bruce where Tony is, Steve is anxious for the future, of the Earth and for Tony. Steve doesn’t want Tony alone in space.

When he learns Peter is with him, he cries for a solid ten minutes, and it takes a lot of help from Bucky to stop enough for anger to take over.

Steve has to make sure they stay safe.

 

_ I'll never let this go _

 

When the ash hits the ground, they pause, panic and hurt filling their hearts.

This can’t be happening, this can’t be happening, this can’t be happening, they think.

Their next thought is, oh god, tell me it didn’t happen to my husband, too.

But they have no way of finding out yet.

 

_ I'll do this on my own _

 

Steve begs Thor and Rocket take him to Titan as soon as possible. Thor wants to stay, help the others. Rocket says he would, but he doesn’t have a ship.

It’s Rocket who actually convinces Thor to do it, complaining about how heartbroken Steve sounds.

Tony is crying, holding onto ash, when Steve arrives.

Tony doesn’t notice his arrival.

 

_ Little boy inside my chest _

_ Breathe some life into my bones _

 

Steve already knows who’s ashes it must be if Tony is crying like this.

Steve’s heart drops, tears filling his eyes, because no no  _ no no _ it can’t be Peter, Peter was supposed to grow up and have a happy life.

Steve walks to Tony and puts a hand on his shoulder.

Tony turns abruptly, and Steve can feel his eyes burn and his heart break as he looks at Tony’s eyes, red from crying, because he knows it’s true.

They lost. And they lost big time.

Tony stands and hugs Steve as tightly as possible all in one motion.

Steve hugs back, holding onto Tony as if he was the last thing in the whole world.

Tony’s shoulders shake as he sobs into Steve’s uniform, and Steve feels the tears roll down his cheeks. He holds his breath, trying not to start sobbing, because he fears that if he does, then they’ll both just be lost and sad and hopeless, but it’s too late.

They both end up back on the floor, ash getting everywhere as they cry, holding each other tight, hoping that they never have to let go.

 

_ I've been lost and wandering _

_ Down and out and missing home _

 

When they get back to Earth, after being checked over by Wakandan medicals, they end up in one of the spare rooms Shuri said they could have.

Tony crashed almost immediately, which just leaves Steve to stare at him.

He’s still just as perfect as he remembers, but awake, he looks sad and lonely.

Asleep, he looks exactly like the boy Steve fell in love with when he came out of the ice.

And Steve almost starts crying, because god, he missed Tony and Peter, and now he can’t even say goodbye to one of them.

The only good part of that was the fact that the one he couldn’t say goodbye to had no doubts Steve loved him.

Steve lays down, and hugs Tony close. He stirs in his sleep, and rolls over to snuggle into Steve.

Steve sniffs as he tries not to cry.

“I missed you,” Tony murmurs, half-asleep, and Steve has to fight hard not to cry.

“I missed you, too,” he replies, and Tony opens his eyes, his blue blue eyes as he stares at Steve.

Tony brushes a hand underneath Steve’s eyes and wipes tears away. Steve catches Tony’s hand and brings it close, kissing his knuckles.

“I love you,” Steve whispers.

Tony smiles, tears filling his eyes. “I love you, too.”

Steve smiles, and pulls Tony closer, pressing his face into Tony’s hair.

Something else nags at Steve, though, keeping him close to tears.

“I wish Peter were here,” he whispers, voice cracking.

Tony freezes, and Steve can feel him hold his breath.

“It’s my fault,” Tony replies, but Steve is already shaking his head.

“No, no, no, you can’t think like that, okay?”

Tony looks up at Steve, silent.

Steve continues. “Because in the end, the only fault it really is, is Thanos’s.”

Tony nods, and Steve keeps holding him close. Part of him is afraid that if he lets go, Tony too will turn to ash, like Bucky, and Peter, and T’Challa, and Sam, and Wanda, and his heart breaks to think of today’s loss, and he can feel Tony’s heart breaking.

“Promise me you’ll stay?” Tony asks, wrapping Steve’s arms around him.

“I thought I already promised that to you,” Steve says softly, remembering a day long ago, back when they were happier.

_ 'Cause you and I we dreamed a dream _

_ On the road with my guitar _

 

Tony had insisted they go back to California for a summer.

Peter complained a little, but only jokingly, and not very much.

They drove down the coast again, and Steve put on some soft guitar music that they found on a tape in the trunk.

When they found Tony’s old car hidden in a Stark warehouse, Steve insisted they take it for a drive. Tony smiled, and grabbed the keys. Steve and Tony forced Peter in the back seat as they got in.

It was close to sunset again, and they had just reached the outlook again.

They parked to watch the sunset. Peter got out to take pictures, and Steve looked at Tony.

He was still as perfect as he was all those years ago.

And Tony could still tell when Steve was staring at him.

Steve spoke immediately. “I told you I’d stay forever.”

Tony smiled, eyes sparkling in the golden light again. “Does this mean we’re going to kiss at sunset again?” He asks, teasingly.

Steve winked. “Only if you want to.”

 

_ So beat a little louder now _

_ I can't hear you anymore _

 

How they fixed it, Tony wasn’t sure. It kind of all was a rush he was still struggling to comprehend.

But they did. Everyone who died was just as they should be.

Alive.

Tony and Steve run through the crowd, pushing through the newly revived, looking for someone in particular.

Tony starts panicking, wondering if truly everyone is alive, because he can’t find who he’s looking for.

He can’t find his son.

Tony doesn’t want to think about a future where all he has is his son’s ashes.

Tony holds his breath, trying not to hyperventilate.

Steve finds Peter, and the three of them end up in a giant hug, and Tony can feel his legs give out as he starts sobbing in relief.

 

_ Woah, I'm gonna lie low _

_ Smoke in my hand, oh _

 

No one was particularly happy with the fact that their heroes had failed them.

Sure, in the end, everyone was alive, but no one wanted to think about what happened.

Fury and Ross agreed that the Avengers and the Guardians should keep their heads low.

The Guardians chose to stay with the Avengers at the complex, claiming they weren’t ready to leave yet.

Steve chose to stay with Tony, the Accords long forgotten.

Steve and his family caught up with each other, telling jokes, stories.

And not just Tony and Peter. His Avenger family, too. Because, really, they were.

They all were happy for the first time in a long time.

But it certainly didn’t stop the nightmares, and Steve lost track of the nights where he had to drag Tony back to bed, away from the smoke of his lab.

 

_ Lying awake in my hotel bed, oh _

_ Down in the valley, down on my luck, oh _

_ Darling I pray something picks me up, hey _

 

Tony paces in his lab, awake again.

He hasn’t been able to sleep much lately.

Sometimes, it’s the nightmares from only a short time ago that plague him, as the ghosts of people who were recently dead mock him for not being able to save them.

Other times, it’s people who are very much alive who mock him, blaming him for something that the others insist wasn’t his fault. But he can’t always bring himself to believe them.

He also can’t get rid of the nagging feeling that something else is wrong, that just as easily as they undid Thanos’s work, he could undo theirs.

So he prepares again, until Steve drags him back to bed.

 

_ I'll never let this go _

_ I'll do this on my own _

 

Steve holds Tony close as the Avengers push toward Capital Hall for the official undoing of the Accords.

The crowd is angry. But the government has decided that they don’t want to control the heroes. They decided they couldn’t anymore.

The crowd focuses its hate on Steve and Tony.

Steve doesn’t care about what they yell at him. He doesn’t care that they think that if he and his friends had signed the Accords in the first place, their response to Thanos would’ve been better.

However, he does care about the fact the crowd just wants to blame Tony for Thanos, period. It makes him angry, especially since he knows. He knows that Tony was the one who knew all along about Thanos and the fact that he was coming.

He does his best to shield Tony, and they have to stop him too many times from picking a fight with the crowd.

 

_ And we never got too tired _

_ And we never got too old _

 

Tony wanders along the beach, staring at the outlook nearby. It was the one, where far too long ago he fell in love with Steve Rogers.

He wonders if his husband knows that he loves him just as much now as he did then.

Steve walks onto the beach soon, blanket and basket in arms. They choose a spot, and let the midday sun shine down on them

“I’m glad it’s not super windy today,” Tony murmurs as he curls up next to Steve.

Steve smiles. “I’m glad Peter got into UCLA. Gives us a nice excuse to come here more often.”

Tony chuckles. “Yeah, I know.”

 

_ We just ran through the streets forever, arm in arm _

 

Steve and Tony walked through the city, fingers entwined.

Steve was staring at his perfect, perfect husband again.

He thought of his sketchbook, and of the many drawings of Tony he had in it.

He had to add another one, Tony illuminated by the city lights, making his eyes shine though his skin was darkened by the night.

Tony looks up into his eyes, and Steve wishes he could capture all the emotion in them.

“Ready to go home?” Tony asks.

Steve smiles, a goofy, cheesy grin forming on his face. “I’m already there, cause I’m with you.”

Tony blushes, and looks down a little. “Still cheesy,” he murmurs.

 

_ And the setting sun was higher than it ever was before _

_ And we never knew perfection like it was _

 

They returned to the outlook again, just the two of them, at sunset.

“I don’t want to leave,” Tony whispers, leaning against Steve.

Steve looks down, into his husband’s eyes. “We don’t have to.”

Tony looks up at him. “We kind of do.”

Steve shakes his head. “We can stay here as long as you’d like,” he insists.

Tony smiles sadly. “I sure wish.”

Steve looks at him. “What’s stopping us?”

 

_ Woah, I'm gonna lie low _

_ Smoke in my hand, oh _

_ Lying awake in my hotel bed, oh _

_ Down in the valley, down on my luck _

_ Darling I pray that you'll hold _

 

Tony didn’t want to go. Steve, Peter, and him were laying on the floor, a family again. Tony was the only one awake.

But while Tony might not have to leave, that didn’t mean the others didn’t.

Peter returned to college in the morning, and Steve had his flight to Wakanda to check on Bucky.

And Tony got to stay home, and watch over the complex.

Which was okay. That wasn’t what he was complaining about.

Tony wanted to stay in this moment, where they were all happy and together, forever.

He thought maybe if he closed his eyes, he would succeed.

 

_ I'll never let this go _

_ I'll do this on my own _

 

Tony woke up to darkness, and he remembered.

Things weren’t as they were in his dream.

For here, in reality, he was still heading home from Titan.

And he still had the ashes of his son in his hands, and the worry that his husband was also ashes somewhere on Earth.

And he felt alone again.

But maybe, if he was lucky, this was a dream that would come true.

He hoped so, for his little boy.


End file.
